Agrarian Reforms Need Acceleration

Professor of Faculty of Economics and Business UGM who is former finance minister, Prof. Dr. Bambang Sudibyo, M.B.A., supported the measure taken by President Joko Widodo to accelerate agrarian reform program and asset redistribution through the distribution of some 12.7 million hectares of land to the society. According to Bambang, if well implemented, the policy will be able to reduce the social imbalance or gini ratio of Indonesia which currently stays at 0.41.

“The agrarian reform program has to be designed as such to benefit the marginalized people,” said Bambang Sudibyo when giving a public lecture themed Social Gap Analysis in Indonesia at the Audiovisual room of Faculty of Economics and Business UGM on Friday (3/2).

According to Bambang Sudibyo, the high rate of social gap in Indonesia after the reforms was due to the wrong policy that was taken when economic crisis hit the country back in 1997 and 1998. This includes the mass corruption through the Bank of Indonesia Liquidity Funds (BLBI), the laws violating Article 33 of the state Guidelines 1945 and the unequal state treasure transfer policy.

In addition, Bambang has the opinion that President Joko Widodo needs to curb anti-corruption measures preventively and curatively, amending 115 laws that violate Article 33 and adoption of affirmative economic policy. He added the affirmative policy should be designed well, adjusting to the condition of Indonesia.Bambang said currently the number of rich people in Indonesia accounts for 15 percent of the total population, the rest 85 percent is poor people. The poor and marginalized people need to be prioritized by the government through development policy that can improve their social welfare.

On the numerous laws that violate the State Guidelines, Bambang pointed out examples like Oil and Gas law, and Water Resource law that have been annulled by the Constitutional Court. “So, there are still 110 more problematic laws, while three laws (on Foreign Exchange Traffic, Rupiah Currency System, and Electricity) are being submitted to the Court for re-examination,” he said.

During the event, Bambang Sudibyo also regretted the fact that a number of law enforcers have been involved in corruption cases. He urged President Joko Widodo to use his authorities to fix the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court, as well as state Financial Auditing Agency. “The credibility of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court, I think, needs to be restored and the President should use his authorities to improve it. Don’t forget the Financial Auditing Agency. The members of the Agency should be the legal and accounting experts, unlike the current one which has members from among politicians that have no legal and accounting competence,” he concluded.